Chris Pureka, The Harmaleighs

Chris Pureka’s frank confessionals are like watching a private therapy session. If that sounds yucky, it’s anything but. Her songs are intense, beautiful reflections of life’s dark edges. A former microbiologist, the Portland, Oregon-based songsmith applies a scientific detachment to what, in other hands, could be uncomfortable, emotional probes. Critics compare her to Gillian Welch and Patty Griffin, but there’s far more turmoil in Pureka — and just as much musicianship. With The Harmaleighs.